"Penguin confirms that, subject to the market test currently under way, it has reached an agreement with the European Commission to settle its investigation into the establishment of agency pricing agreements for eBooks," said Penguin in a statement.

"Penguin's position that it has done nothing wrong remains unchanged and the company continues to believe that the agency pricing model operates in the best interests of consumers and authors.

"While we disagree with some elements of the Commission's analysis, we are settling as a procedural matter to clear the decks in anticipation of our proposed merger with Random House."

Although the abolition of the deal spells an end to the EU's probe, the two companies remain under scrutiny in the US, where Apple CEO Tim Cook has been ordered to testify in court.